Praise, Weapon of the Spirit

We know that in our time on this earth, there are many battles to be fought.  Chuck D. Pierce, in the Foreword to the book, The Rules of Engagement by Cindy Trimm stated, "When we become Christians, we are born onto a battlefield."  Jesus addressed this issue when He told the disciples in John 15:19 (NLT), "If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. 19 The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you."  Then, James 4:4 (NLT) reads , "You adulterers! Don't you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God."

What are some of the battles we face?  There are relational struggles, in families, friendships, and marriages.  We face health and financial issues.  We experience the flesh warring against the Spirit, good verses evil, truth verses lies, and love verses hatred...to name a few.

How do we prepare for battle?  What strategies do we need to be aware of in order to be able to win in the battles of life?  There are, I believe some things we need to know that are vital in order for us to be prepared for war.  We must know who our enemy is and what his modus operandi is or how he operates.  We also have to know who we are, what our weapons are, and how to use them.

The first thing we must recognize is that we have an enemy who wants to destroy both, us and our faith in God.  John 10:10a (NASB20) reveals, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy."

We learn some of our enemy's nature and how he operates in John 8:44 (NLT), "For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies."  The devil is a murderer, has no truth in him, speaks only lies, and in this verse is called the father of all lies.  Our enemy is a deceiver.

 1 Timothy 4:1 (NLT) reveals one way he will attempt to destroy our faith, "Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons."  False teachers inspired by satan and deceiving spirits will cause believers to deny the true doctrines of Christianity and depart from the faith. 

 David Wilkerson stated why it is vital for us to recognize this is one battle we will face.  In an article he authored, titled, "Satan is Out to Destroy Your Faith", he stated, "By faith and it's released power, kingdoms are subdued, righteousness is born, promises of God are obtained, the mouth of lions are shut, satanic fire is quenched and there is escape from the sword."

 Ephesians 6:12 (NASB20), "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places."  Our battles are against the spiritual kingdom of satan.

2 Corinthians 10: 3 and 4, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds."  These verses tell us the weapons of our warfare are not the weapons of men, but the spiritual weapons of God.

The apostle Paul instructs us in Ephesians 6: 13-17 to take up the whole armor of God, which enables us to oppose and resist our adversary in the days of peril.  Our chief weapon in this spiritual battle is the Word of God.  Jesus resisted satan with God's Word as recorded in Luke 4:1-12 and we must do the same.

What we have looked at so far, has laid a foundation for my primary topic of this blog.  I stated earlier that one of the strategies we need to be aware of, in order to be prepared to do battle, is knowing what our weapons are and how to use them.

In addition to the Word of God, we are going to look at another powerful spiritual weapon we are to use in our battles.  That weapon is "praise".  Defining praise, whether from Webster's Dictionary or Strong's Exhaustive Concordance means, “recognizing the wonderful or great attributes of someone or celebrating what they have accomplished.”  We have seen examples of praise being given in worldly settings, possibly spoken with reference to an athlete, actor, scientist, or humanitarian.  Our focus and attention here, however, is praise given to God, the Creator, Sustainer of all things, and the One to Whom all praise should ultimately be directed.  Our praise to God, can be given in a private setting or in the company of other believers.

Psalm 34:1, "I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually (without interruption, continuously) be in my mouth."

The following scriptures give us an idea of HOW we praise God:

Psalm 35:28, "And my tongue shall speak of Your righteousness and of Your praise all the day long."

Psalm 9: 1, "I will praise You, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works."

Psalm 95:1-7 (NASB20), "Come, let's sing for joy to the Lord, Let's shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. 2 Let's come before His presence with a song of thanksgiving, let's shout joyfully to Him in songs with instruments. 3 For the Lord is a great God and a great King above all gods, 4 in whose hand are the depths of the earth, the peaks of the mountains are also His. 5 The sea is His, for it was He who made it, and His hands formed the dry land. 6 Come, let's worship and bow down, let's kneel before the Lord our Maker. 7 For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand."

The follow scriptures tells us WHY we praise God.

Psalm 100:3-5 (NLT),  "Acknowledge that the Lord is God! He made us, and we are His. We are His people, the sheep of His pasture. 4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving; go into His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. 5 For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and His faithfulness continues to each generation."

Take note in the following scriptures, of how praise became a mighty weapon against the enemy.  2 Chronicles 20 gives an account of a great multitude (army) which came against Judah (who was led by their King, Jehoshaphat).  As we read 2 Chronicles 20: 21-24, we see that Judah defeated the enemy in a very unique way - 21, "After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the Lord and praising Him for His holy splendor. This is what they sang: "Give thanks to the Lord; His faithful love endures forever!" 22 At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. 23 The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. 24 So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped."

It is important to note that the day before this battle, they (Judah and the priests) had all met in the house of the Lord.  As we look back at verses 14 through 19, we read, " the Spirit of the Lord came upon one of the men standing there. His name was Jahaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite who was a descendant of Asaph. 15 He said, "Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid! Don't be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God's. 16 Tomorrow, march out against them. You will find them coming up through the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the wilderness of Jeruel. 17 But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the Lord's victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you!" 18 Then King Jehoshaphat bowed low with his face to the ground. And all the people of Judah and Jerusalem did the same, worshiping the Lord. 19 Then the Levites from the clans of Kohath and Korah stood to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud shout."

A very strong connection we must make when discussing "praise" as a spiritual weapon comes from Psalm 22:3 (see my August 26 blog, "Sing a New Song"), "But You are holy, You that inhabits the praises of Israel."  Praise invites the presence of God into whatever situation you are in.

We see a New Testament example of the weapon of praise resulting in deliverance, from a prison, for Paul and Silas.  Acts 16:25 and 26 (NASB20), "Now about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them; 26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's chains were unfastened." 

All that God is, is present in the habitation of God.  We can expect a manifestation of His glory and power.  His manifest presence is something that occurs in our lives as He chooses to reveal Himself.

We see scriptural examples of the manifestation of God's glory and power, due to His presence, in the Old and New Testaments.

Exodus 19:16-19 (NASB20), "So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud over the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the entire mountain quaked violently. 19 When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him with thunder."

Psalm 114:6 and 7a, "O mountains, that you skipped like rams? O little hills, like lambs? 7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord"

1 Kings 8:10 and 11 (NLT), "When the priests came out of the Holy Place, a thick cloud filled the Temple of the Lord. 11 The priests could not continue their service because of the cloud, for the glorious presence of the Lord filled the Temple."

John 18:3-6 (NLT), " The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove. 4 Jesus fully realized all that was going to happen to him, so he stepped forward to meet them. "Who are you looking for?" he asked. 5 "Jesus the Nazarene," they replied. "I AM he," Jesus said. (Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them.) 6 As Jesus said "I AM he," they all drew back and fell to the ground!"

Acts 2:2 and 3 (NLT), "Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them."

Acts 4:29b-31, "The disciples prayed, " grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, 30 "by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." 31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness."

Remember this, all of God's attributes are present in the habitation of the Lord.

David encourages us to praise in times of trouble, for God is our defense.  Psalm 59:16 and 17 reads, "But I will sing of Your power; yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning: for You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. 17 Unto You, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defense, and the God of my mercy."

Psalm 149:1-9 (NASB20), " Praise the Lord! Sing a new song to the Lord, and His praise in the congregation of the godly ones. 2 Israel shall be joyful in his Maker; The sons of Zion shall rejoice in their King. 3 They shall praise His name with dancing; They shall sing praises to Him with tambourine and lyre. 4 For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will glorify the lowly with salvation. 5 The godly ones shall be jubilant in glory; They shall sing for joy on their beds. 6 The high praises of God shall be in their mouths, and a two-edged sword in their hands, 7 to execute vengeance on the nations, and punishment on the peoples, 8 to bind their kings with chains, and their dignitaries with shackles of iron, 9 to execute against them the judgment written. This is an honor for all His godly ones. Praise the Lord!"

Psalm 150:1-6 (NASB20), "Praise the Lord! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty expanse. 2 Praise Him for His mighty deeds; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness. 3 Praise Him with trumpet sound; Praise Him with harp and lyre. 4 Praise Him with tambourine and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and flute. 5 Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals. 6 Everything that has breath shall praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!"

There are numerous way we can praise God and invite the presence of the Lord into our circumstances.

As we fight spiritual warfare and the good fight of faith, do not forget that praise to God is a powerful weapon which brings all that He is into our circumstances. 

With Him present, we win!